The culture of bullying in a primary school
- Authors: Macdonald, Helen Margaret
- Date: 2012-09-05
- Subjects: Bullying in schools - South Africa , School environment - South Africa , Schools - Social aspects - South Africa
- Type: Mini-Dissertation
- Identifier: uj:9593 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/7015
- Description: M.Ed. , School bullying has become a serious problem worldwide, affecting as many as one in four children. Although not much research on bullying has been conducted in South Africa, bullying has been found to underlie psychological problems, violence and suicide. A common myth among people is that bullying is seen as something that only happens at other schools, but according to many researchers it happens at all schools. Until recently, research has focused on deficit-positivistic perspectives that have viewed bullying as a cause and effect relationship. This consequently led to a belief that the problem can be 'fixed'. This resulted in the use of ad-hoc, short-term strategies that have served to alleviate the problem of bullying temporarily. The focus of this research was to gain a thorough understanding of how the unique culture at Hillside Primary School influenced bullying behaviour, by identifying and describing the values and norms of the various members of the community, that underlie bullying. This study was based on a constructive, ecosystemic and critical perspective, and therefore focused on the whole system, rather than only on the bully and/or the victim. An integration of Davidoff and Lazarus's (1997) framework for whole-school development and Keith Sullivan's continuum model, which shows the relationship between the school's philosophy and the school environment, was used to understand and interpret the findings. It is contended that if members of a community are made aware of the values, norms, beliefs and attitudes that contribute towards bullying, then they are in a position to change them. It is argued that such an approach will lead to deep and long lasting change because it is preventative in nature, rather than solely relying on intervention. The methodological design used to achieve the research aim was a qualitative critical ethnography. The sample was purposefully and theoretically selected. This design allowed the researcher into the here and now perspectives of the participants at Hillside Primary School, once a week, over a period of approximately two terms. Moreover, it accommodated the flexible and emergent nature of the research, and allowed for thick, rich interpretive descriptions of the process. The researcher used the Grade seven class as one of the systems of the school, as a lens to explore the culture of the school, through participant observation. The data that emerged was continuously interpreted by means of the constant comparative method of data analysis.The main finding of the study indicated that bullying is a complex phenomenon that is interwoven into numerous values and norms of a predominant authoritarian culture that unwittingly condone bullying. The findings also revealed that Hillside Primary School may be described as a conflicted school, because its philosophy does not cohere with the implementation of democratic procedures. This is indicative of an unsafe learning environment. The research concludes that if schools in South Africa are serious about combating bullying, then they need to first become authentic, purposeful communities, in which all members of a community identify and commit to core values.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Macdonald, Helen Margaret
- Date: 2012-09-05
- Subjects: Bullying in schools - South Africa , School environment - South Africa , Schools - Social aspects - South Africa
- Type: Mini-Dissertation
- Identifier: uj:9593 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/7015
- Description: M.Ed. , School bullying has become a serious problem worldwide, affecting as many as one in four children. Although not much research on bullying has been conducted in South Africa, bullying has been found to underlie psychological problems, violence and suicide. A common myth among people is that bullying is seen as something that only happens at other schools, but according to many researchers it happens at all schools. Until recently, research has focused on deficit-positivistic perspectives that have viewed bullying as a cause and effect relationship. This consequently led to a belief that the problem can be 'fixed'. This resulted in the use of ad-hoc, short-term strategies that have served to alleviate the problem of bullying temporarily. The focus of this research was to gain a thorough understanding of how the unique culture at Hillside Primary School influenced bullying behaviour, by identifying and describing the values and norms of the various members of the community, that underlie bullying. This study was based on a constructive, ecosystemic and critical perspective, and therefore focused on the whole system, rather than only on the bully and/or the victim. An integration of Davidoff and Lazarus's (1997) framework for whole-school development and Keith Sullivan's continuum model, which shows the relationship between the school's philosophy and the school environment, was used to understand and interpret the findings. It is contended that if members of a community are made aware of the values, norms, beliefs and attitudes that contribute towards bullying, then they are in a position to change them. It is argued that such an approach will lead to deep and long lasting change because it is preventative in nature, rather than solely relying on intervention. The methodological design used to achieve the research aim was a qualitative critical ethnography. The sample was purposefully and theoretically selected. This design allowed the researcher into the here and now perspectives of the participants at Hillside Primary School, once a week, over a period of approximately two terms. Moreover, it accommodated the flexible and emergent nature of the research, and allowed for thick, rich interpretive descriptions of the process. The researcher used the Grade seven class as one of the systems of the school, as a lens to explore the culture of the school, through participant observation. The data that emerged was continuously interpreted by means of the constant comparative method of data analysis.The main finding of the study indicated that bullying is a complex phenomenon that is interwoven into numerous values and norms of a predominant authoritarian culture that unwittingly condone bullying. The findings also revealed that Hillside Primary School may be described as a conflicted school, because its philosophy does not cohere with the implementation of democratic procedures. This is indicative of an unsafe learning environment. The research concludes that if schools in South Africa are serious about combating bullying, then they need to first become authentic, purposeful communities, in which all members of a community identify and commit to core values.
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Sharing the mainstream education environment with a sibling with a disability.
- Authors: Wright-Scott, Kerry-Ann
- Date: 2009-02-27T07:13:49Z
- Subjects: children with disabilities' education , mainstreaming in education
- Type: Thesis
- Identifier: uj:8201 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/2204
- Description: M.Ed. , Owing to South Africa’s changing socio-political climate post 1994, the educational environment has adapted its policies so as to mirror the nature of society, as reflected in the Constitution. Thus children with disabilities have been included into the mainstream education environment, through the introduction of policies such as The South African Schools Act of 1996 and the Education White Paper 6 of 2001. This paradigm shift within education has been further promoted through inclusion trends throughout the world, which are promoted by way of the Salamanca Statement and similar documents. Inclusive education research has primarily focused on the perceptions of the child with a disability, as well as his or her parents and teachers. Relatively little has focused on the sibling, potentially the only family member to share both the home and school environment with the child with a disability. The purpose of this research is therefore to explore the experiences of the siblings who share the mainstream education environment with a brother or sister with a disability. A qualitative research design was adopted so as to gain thick descriptions from the siblings of children with disabilities. Siblings were asked to take photographs which illustrated activities performed by them and the child with a disability. These were to act as a catalyst for conversation and form the basis of semi-structured interviews. In addition to these primary sources of data, a researcher journal also provided secondary data. Together all sources of data were combined in the constant comparative method of analysis. Through analysis, the data revealed the following: These siblings see the child with a disability for the person they are and not for the disability they experience, however they do not have the same level of acceptance for all children with disabilities. They believe that their sibling with a disability is accepted by peers within the mainstream school environment because of their positive attitude and determined effort made in integrating themselves whole-heartedly within the school environment. Despite this positive experience of their sibling with a disability, like other siblings, they have separate lives at school and thus the child with a disability is dependent upon alternative support provision. Lastly, many of the siblings lacked in-depth information regarding their brother or sister’s disability and often responded to questions with, “I don’t know.”
- Full Text:
- Authors: Wright-Scott, Kerry-Ann
- Date: 2009-02-27T07:13:49Z
- Subjects: children with disabilities' education , mainstreaming in education
- Type: Thesis
- Identifier: uj:8201 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/2204
- Description: M.Ed. , Owing to South Africa’s changing socio-political climate post 1994, the educational environment has adapted its policies so as to mirror the nature of society, as reflected in the Constitution. Thus children with disabilities have been included into the mainstream education environment, through the introduction of policies such as The South African Schools Act of 1996 and the Education White Paper 6 of 2001. This paradigm shift within education has been further promoted through inclusion trends throughout the world, which are promoted by way of the Salamanca Statement and similar documents. Inclusive education research has primarily focused on the perceptions of the child with a disability, as well as his or her parents and teachers. Relatively little has focused on the sibling, potentially the only family member to share both the home and school environment with the child with a disability. The purpose of this research is therefore to explore the experiences of the siblings who share the mainstream education environment with a brother or sister with a disability. A qualitative research design was adopted so as to gain thick descriptions from the siblings of children with disabilities. Siblings were asked to take photographs which illustrated activities performed by them and the child with a disability. These were to act as a catalyst for conversation and form the basis of semi-structured interviews. In addition to these primary sources of data, a researcher journal also provided secondary data. Together all sources of data were combined in the constant comparative method of analysis. Through analysis, the data revealed the following: These siblings see the child with a disability for the person they are and not for the disability they experience, however they do not have the same level of acceptance for all children with disabilities. They believe that their sibling with a disability is accepted by peers within the mainstream school environment because of their positive attitude and determined effort made in integrating themselves whole-heartedly within the school environment. Despite this positive experience of their sibling with a disability, like other siblings, they have separate lives at school and thus the child with a disability is dependent upon alternative support provision. Lastly, many of the siblings lacked in-depth information regarding their brother or sister’s disability and often responded to questions with, “I don’t know.”
- Full Text:
Experiences of parents with children with disabilities in mainstream schools
- Authors: Van Heerden, Melanie
- Date: 2012-09-05
- Subjects: Education -- Parent participation -- South Africa , Children with disabilities -- Education -- South Africa , Inclusive education -- South Africa , Parent-teacher relationships -- South Africa
- Type: Mini-Dissertation
- Identifier: uj:3560 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/6944
- Description: M.Ed. , After the change in government in 1994, the development of and commitment to the democratic values of liberty, equality and civic rights, led to the wider notion of inclusion in South Africa. Inclusive education has recently been enforced by the White Paper 6, which promotes the access of learners with disabilities in mainstream schools and protects the rights of all learners from discrimination. Education must therefore be structured in such a way that all learners can have access to a single educational system that is responsive to diversity, regardless of learners' physical, intellectual, social, emotional, linguistic or other differences. In establishing inclusive education in South Africa, parents are regarded as an important form of support. At institutional level, partnerships will be established with parents so that they can, armed with information, counselling and skills, participate more effectively in the planning and implementation of inclusion activities, enabling parents to play a more active role in the learning and teaching of their own children, despite limitations due to disabilities or chronic illnesses. Parents are thus, through legislation, empowered to be partners in the education of their children. Research on inclusive education in South Africa mainly focused on policy development and the attitudes and perceptions of teachers. The purpose of this research is to contribute to the knowledge base that could promote effective parent-school partnerships. Through the use of a qualitative research design and the theoretical framework of inclusive education, the aim of the study was to gain an understanding of parents' perceptions and experiences of inclusive education. Six 'information-rich cases' were selected for in-depth interviews. Field notes, as secondary data, were taken as it is a classic medium for documentation in qualitative research and it contributed to the trustworthiness of the study. Through the use of the Constant Comparative Method, the data gathered were analysed and finally categorised into three main findings: qualities of the principal as leader and manager, the role of the teacher in determining the success of inclusive education and supporting the siblings of the learner with a disability.
- Full Text:
- Authors: Van Heerden, Melanie
- Date: 2012-09-05
- Subjects: Education -- Parent participation -- South Africa , Children with disabilities -- Education -- South Africa , Inclusive education -- South Africa , Parent-teacher relationships -- South Africa
- Type: Mini-Dissertation
- Identifier: uj:3560 , http://hdl.handle.net/10210/6944
- Description: M.Ed. , After the change in government in 1994, the development of and commitment to the democratic values of liberty, equality and civic rights, led to the wider notion of inclusion in South Africa. Inclusive education has recently been enforced by the White Paper 6, which promotes the access of learners with disabilities in mainstream schools and protects the rights of all learners from discrimination. Education must therefore be structured in such a way that all learners can have access to a single educational system that is responsive to diversity, regardless of learners' physical, intellectual, social, emotional, linguistic or other differences. In establishing inclusive education in South Africa, parents are regarded as an important form of support. At institutional level, partnerships will be established with parents so that they can, armed with information, counselling and skills, participate more effectively in the planning and implementation of inclusion activities, enabling parents to play a more active role in the learning and teaching of their own children, despite limitations due to disabilities or chronic illnesses. Parents are thus, through legislation, empowered to be partners in the education of their children. Research on inclusive education in South Africa mainly focused on policy development and the attitudes and perceptions of teachers. The purpose of this research is to contribute to the knowledge base that could promote effective parent-school partnerships. Through the use of a qualitative research design and the theoretical framework of inclusive education, the aim of the study was to gain an understanding of parents' perceptions and experiences of inclusive education. Six 'information-rich cases' were selected for in-depth interviews. Field notes, as secondary data, were taken as it is a classic medium for documentation in qualitative research and it contributed to the trustworthiness of the study. Through the use of the Constant Comparative Method, the data gathered were analysed and finally categorised into three main findings: qualities of the principal as leader and manager, the role of the teacher in determining the success of inclusive education and supporting the siblings of the learner with a disability.
- Full Text:
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